Asian Games 2023: After Neha Thakur's Silver, Eabad Ali bags bronze in sailing

Hangzhou: India won their second medal in sailing at the 2023 Asian Games as Eabad Ali bagged bronze in the Men's Windsurfer RS:X here on Tuesday.

Ali finished triumphant with a net score of 52 from 14 races, putting him behind the Republic of Korea’s Cho Wonwoo (13) and Thailand’s Natthaphong Phonoppharat (29).

The sailor with the least points is declared the winner, unlike the majority of other sports. For example, an athlete who finishes first gets 1 point, while an athlete who finishes 8th would get eight points.

If an athlete finishes first in three races, he or she will have three points (1+1+1). However, if an athlete finishes first, third and fifth across three races, he or she will have nine points (1+3+5).

In sailing, athletes also have the option of chopping off their worst race to boost their standings. For instance an athlete who finishes in the top 3 in all but one race, he or she can have that result deleted to enhance their position on the points table.

Only six sailors competed in the men's windsurfer RS:X event.

Earlier, Neha Thakur finished with a net score of 27 in the girl's dinghy - ILCA4 event to finish second and win the silver medal at the Asian Games 2023.

The 17-year-old Neha won one and finished second in two of her 11 races in the event at Hangzhou. It is India's first sailing medal this edition and a fourth silver overall in the 19th Asian Games.

Neha is from Amaltaj village in Madhya Pradesh's Dewas and is a famrmer;s daughter. She finished 6th place at the 2022 World Championships.

Neha is a two-time Asian Games medalist, winning silver in 2018 and 2022. She was also 4th place at the 2021 World Championships.

Neha won a bronze medal in the Asia Sailing Championship in Abu Dhabi last year.

Congratulating Neha, Union Earth Sciences Minister Kiren Rijiju Xed, "Great performance by Neha Thakur who represented India in the Girl's Dinghy - ILCA 4 category."

"Hearty congratulations on winning the SILVER MEDAL at the #AsianGames2022. A good beginning as this is India's 1st medal in Sailing!

#Cheer4India #JeetegaBharat," he added.

KC Ganapathy and Varun Thakkar, bronze medallists from Jakarta 2018, narrowly missed out on a podium spot in the men's skiff 49er. The Indian duo was in fourth place in the standings after Monday’s races but a second-place finish in race 13 lifted them to third.

Ganapathy and Thakkar, however, failed to follow it up in the final race. a fifth-place finish in race 14 saw them finish fifth overall in the final standings with a net points count of 48.

China, Oman and Hong Kong China took the podium spots in the event.

India’s Siddeshwar Indar Doiphode-Ramya Saravanan took the fourth position in the five-team mixed multihull Nacra 17 event, accumulating 45 net points from the 14-race series.

Harshita Tomar-Shital Verma, in women’s skiff 49erFX, also finished just outside the podium spots after raking in 47 net points from 14 races, reported Olympics.com.

Ishwariya Ganesh’s 44 net points from a series of 14 races placed her at the bottom of the pile in women's windsurfer RS:X. Only four sailors competed in the category.

Adhvait Menon, competing in boys’ dinghy ILCA4, meanwhile, managed to finish eighth overall with 76 net points. Sudhanshu Shekhar and Preeti Kongara claimed the sixth position in the seven-crew mixed dinghy 470 with 51 net points from 12 races. (UNI)

(Photo:X/SAI Media)